Page 5 of All You Need is Greece

‘We’re here. Welcome to Pine Forest Rescue,’ says Lars as he opens the door for me and Hannah to climb out. At once I inhale the scent of the surrounding pine trees as Lars unloads our suitcases.

A pretty woman wearing a blue dress with a white cardigan over the top, with swept-up grey hair that is the same colour as her eyes, comes to meet us and introduces herself as Judith. She welcomes us warmly before offering us a cold drink.

‘You are the first ones to arrive,’ she explains as she takes some fresh lemonade from a fridge. ‘Or maybe you would prefer a hot drink, as the weather is a little cool,’ she continues, but we stick with the offer of lemonade, as it feels warm to us.

In fact, the weather is just perfect, hot, but not stifling as Lars had told us it had been during the summer months.

‘I’m not sure I could have coped with your summer heatwave,’ I tell Judith.

‘Maybe I have acclimatised to the weather,’ Judith tells us. ‘Although the summer was exceptionally hot, even for the locals.’

‘Well, it’s good to be here. It’s such a beautiful area and certainly warmer than back home.’

‘I burn easily, which is why I didn’t come earlier in the summer. I thought this time of year would suit me perfectly,’ says Hannah.

‘Well, you are both very welcome,’ says Judith as she pours us a drink and places some delicious-looking scones onto a plate, with some butter and strawberry jam.

‘Home-made,’ she says about the jam. ‘Although I can’t take the credit for the scones, my niece, Tania, made them. Hers are so much nicer than mine,’ she admits.

Judith asks us about our work back home and Hannah tells us that she is studying English literature, and that the late summer months work for her other plans too.

‘I’m not back at uni until mid-October, so I thought it would be nice to enjoy some time in a completely different place.’

Hannah hopes to become a librarian one day, which explains why she works weekends at her local library. I already can’t imagine her doing anything else.

‘You must be good with people if you manage a shop,’ says Judith, when I tell her about the supermarket.

‘I like to think so. Although it isn’t all plain sailing.’ I tell her about a bloke who recently tried to return a pizza and get a refund after he’d eaten three quarters of it. ‘I do love it, though. You never know what you are going to come across in any one day.’

‘Sounds a bit like here,’ she says, chuckling.

After our cold drinks, Judith takes us on a tour, first showing us to the room that Hannah and I are sharing. We then head off to meet the animals, who are all completely adorable. A gorgeous white terrier melts my heart with his large brown eyes and tiny little bark that is so endearing.

‘Hey there, fella.’ I pet the friendly dog and he wags his tail excitedly. Most of the dogs are delighted to meet us, one or two older dogs pottering slowly over, and giving us a sniff before wandering off again and curling up in their dog beds.

I dread to think what would happen to these animals if places such as this didn’t exist. Especially for the older ones, who at least have the chance to live out their last days in relative comfort here at the rescue, as older dogs are so much harder to rehome.

‘It’s about time for the second feed, so your arrival time has worked out perfectly,’ says Judith, who we follow to the food preparation area.

After the dogs have been fed and watered, Hannah and I walk the dogs that haven’t been out with volunteers today. We take a circular walk of the area, getting our bearings, and when we arrive back at the rescue, a blue car has just pulled up and a middle-aged couple climb out. The blonde woman is tall and willowy, the gentleman dark haired and deeply tanned. The colour is so intense, I can’t help wondering if it is a spray tan.

‘Hi!’ The woman raises her hand and waves as we approach. ‘Oh my goodness, are these some of the pooches?’ She bends down and pets the dogs, making kissing sounds and calling them little beauties, and the air is filled with a cloud of her floral fragrance. Her face is remarkably unlined, yet I would maybe place the couple in their late forties. There is definitely an air of elegance about them, as even dressed casually in jeans and cotton shirts, they display a definite sense of style.

‘I’m Doll and this is my husband, Michael,’ says the attractive blonde. ‘Well, it’s Dorothy really, but my dad always called me Doll when I was a little girl, and the name just kind of stuck.’ She smiles a perfect smile, and the husband grips my hand so firmly with his handshake I almost visibly wince. I can see Hannah have the same reaction, and try to hide a smile.

‘Great to meet you, ladies.’ He smiles an equally sparkling white-toothed grin as his wife.

Once we are all inside, Judith shows Doll and Michael to their room, and soon the pale-yellow sun is disappearing behind the hills as evening falls, and an indigo sky slowly begins to take its place.

‘Well, isn’t this just wonderful,’ says Doll, tucking into a simple supper of chicken souvlaki, pitta breads and salad. ‘Just what we both needed: simplicity and mountain views. I can’t wait to get out there walking with the dogs in the morning.’

‘Me, too,’ agrees Michael. ‘We’ve always loved dogs, haven’t we, Doll?’ He turns to his wife. ‘But being away so much, we have never really kept them as it wouldn’t be fair.’

‘What do you do for a living?’ I ask, intrigued by the fact that they are away from home a lot.

‘We are professional dancers,’ says Doll. ‘We’ve just finished a tour of Europe, actually.’

‘She’s being modest,’ says Michael, taking a sip of bottled beer. ‘When she says professional dancers, we are triple world champions in Latin American dance.’

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